Got my fish yesterday and theyre all dead. please help. 2 cichlids, 2 small albino fish and 1 algae eater (pl- something. cant spell it)

v.tewell quote	subscribe [rss]	subscribe [email]	#1	Posted 07 Jul 2012, 7:33 pm
Set my tank up about 4 days ago. Rinsed and added gravel, added faucet water, placed decorations, added the water filter, heater and air pump, then added water conditioner and aquarium salt. I was told by aunt that she has never heard of adding salt to a freshwater tank, but i did it anyway. i added the amount as stated on the carton. i added the amount stated on the bottle for the water conditioner. I let the heater sit for 2 hours before plugging it in. My water was at GH 120, KH 180, PH 7.0, NO2 0, NO3 20-0. I went to petco and the man advised me that the best fish to go with cichlids would be some type of small fish with spikes on their back. I added 2 small plants: 1 8" aqua fern (trichomanes javanicum) and 1 8" wisteria (hygrophila difformis) to my tank after washing off the gel like substance on them. I let the bag of fish sit in the water for approx 20 minutes, then added the fish in my tank. I added 2 electric cichlids, an algae eater and 2 of those small albino fish to my tank yesterday at about 3 pm. I noticed that the small albino fish swam to bottom of tank and sat there for a while. The entire time I had them in the tank, I noticed they would swim for a very short time (maybe 5 sec at a time) and go back to the bottom and sit there. I observed them to still be breathing. The other fish were swimming around like normal. I left my house and came back at about 6:30 pm or so and one of my cichlids had already died. The rest of the fish were still alive though. The small albino fish were still at the bottom of the tank, but would still come up to the surface every now and then but would go right back down to the gravel and sit there. I left the house again and came back at approx 11:30 pm and the other cichlid was dead. The small albino fish were still acting the same way. I turned their light out and went to bed. I woke up this morning around 11:30 am and found all of the rest of my fish dead, including the algae eater. I checked my water levels and they were the same as before: GH 120, KH 180, PH 7.0, NO2 0, NO3 0-20. The temp in the tank is 78 degrees. The air pump is working and is on low. PLEASE HELP ME IN FINDING OUT WHAT WENT WRONG AND WHAT I SHOULD DO FROM HERE. How should I clean out the tank and get it ready for new fish and which new fish should I get, etc. This was my first fish tank and first fish. Sponsored links
BettaLove<3 quote			#2	Posted 16 Jan 2013, 12:57 am
Check the quality of your water. Most probably, super high pH caused the problem. There is also a chance that they had contracted some sort of quick-acting fatal disease. I would talk to Petco about it and they might give you a refund for your fish. I'm sorry about your loss.